A Plainer Translation

This volume--the work of a lifetime--brings together all the Joseph Smith Translation manuscript in a remarkable and useful way. Now, for the first time, readers can take a careful look at the complete text, along with photos of several actual manuscript pages. The book contains a typographic transcription of all the original manuscripts, unedited and preserved exactly as dictated by the Prophet Joseph and recorded by his scribes. In addition, this volume features essays on the background, doctrinal contributions, and editorial procedures involved in the Joseph Smith Translation, as well as the history of the manuscripts since Joseph Smith's day.

Philip L. Barlow offers an in-depth analysis of the approaches taken to the Bible by major Mormon leaders, from its beginnings to the present. He shows that Mormon attitudes toward the Bible comprise an extraordinary mix of conservative, liberal, and radical ingredients: an almost fundamentalist adherence to the King James Version co-exists with belief in the possibility of new revelation and surprising ideas about the limits of human language. Barlow's exploration takes important steps toward unraveling the mystery of this quintessential American religious phenomenon. This updated edition of Mormons and the Bible includes an extended bibliography and a new preface, casting Joseph Smith's mission into a new frame and treating evolutions in Mormonism's biblical usage in recent decades.

Bible readers are often preoccupied with themselves. At times they neglect the original, ancient context of the biblical writings. The novelty of the modern is leveraged to trump the ancient. Mormon hermeneutics seems to say more about the modern LDS church than any ancient biblical meaning. Positively, the LDS is to be applauded for their emphasis on the living out of their faith. However, through various approaches to the Bible, the LDS Church seems to neglect the ancient horizon of the biblical text. Any interpretation of the Bible, LDS or otherwise, should be held accountable. This book is an attempt to categorize Mormon hermeneutics and utilizes numerous hermeneutical voices from the field of philosophical hermeneutics.

As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we sometimes don't realize how unique much of our doctrine is on the Atonement of Jesus Christ. The Lord revealed through the young Prophet Joseph Smith important truths that had been lost regarding our Redeemer's great sacrifice. Were Adam and Eve forgiven for the Fall? Is it possible that there will be two separate resurrections? Will we inherit our Heavenly Father's kingdom? The answers to these truths are familiar to most Latter-day Saints today. However, there was a time when these revelations were not widely available; a time when Satan was desperately trying to keep these revolutionary truths buried in darkness. A first of its kind, Chad Morris's book New Light on the Atonement focuses on the first two years of the organized Church and the events surrounding the revelations that we now take for granted. Readers now have the opportunity to gain a greater knowledge of Joseph Smith and the restored truths that came through him regarding the most important sacrifice of all time, the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

In Engraven Upon Plates, Printed Upon Paper: Textual and Narrative Structures of the Book of Mormon, author Brant A Gardner delves into the intriguing layers of composition and historical context of the Book of Mormon. While taking seriously the implications for what it means for this book of scripture to be a translation of an ancient record written by historical persons, Gardner explores the translation process of the Book of Mormon, analyzing three compositional layers: the nineteenth-century text, the Nephite Book of Mormon, and the Nephite writers and their sources. This work contributes to a deeper understanding of the origins and compositional history of the Book of Mormon, without aiming to serve as an apologetic defense. Praise for Engraven Upon Plates, Printed Upon Paper: “Brant Gardner has long been at the head of Book of Mormon studies. With his new book, Engraven Upon Plates, Printed Upon Paper, he adds to his lengthy resume by deconstructing one of the more vexing issues in Book of Mormon studies, namely how to understand the complicated relationship between the Nephite Gold Plates and the nineteenth-century English Book of Mormon. Gardner provides careful analysis of by what means Joseph Smith may have translated the plates, how the Nephite authors may have conceived their project, and in what way those Nephite authors may have integrated their own sources into their record. Any reader seeking a deeper insight into construction and realization of the Book of Mormon text will find much to admire in this project.” — Nicholas J. Frederick, Associate Professor of Ancient Scripture, Brigham Young University, and author of The Bible, Mormon Scripture, and the “Rhetoric of Allusivity” “Written as a companion to The Plates of Mormon: A Book of Mormon Study Edition Based on Textual and Narrative Structures in the English Translation, this volume bristles with insights gained through a detailed reading of the text. It represents one of the most thorough and substantive treatments of the nature of the translation, transmission, and organizational design of the Book of Mormon text to-date. This expansive study immediately rises to top of must-read resources relative to the Book of Mormon.” — Kerry Hull, co-editor, A Hundredth Part: Exploring the History and Teachings of the Book of Mormon